Conclusion

In this report, we provided the results of the second and third year of the research, conducted in the framework of DEAR co-funded project Global Schools. In this part, we focused on teachers’ education practice in Austria, Czech Republic, Ireland and Italy. The methodology adopted is a multiple-site case study design, based on ethnography as overall methodological approach. The research theoretical framework was a qualitative one, seeking for a description of practices and meaning making to behavioural patterns. After having briefly reviewed the literature on GCE teacher education and a description of the methodology used, the first part of the report presented the four national case studies which offer a careful description of both internal and external cases. Such evidence-based reports are grounded in data analysis of field notes, course documents and interviews collected within the framework of the ethnographic participant observation. A second part consists of a comparative analysis of the three major common themes that emerged from the analysis in the four national cases: GCE conception, teaching approaches and contrasting cultures. This last part summarizes the key elements taken from the analysis. As we stated in the introduction, research does not measure efficacy and impact of the proposed training course. Thus, it does not allow to evaluate effectiveness and impact of the courses. However, in depth analysis provides exploration on ideas, visions and course design which could be somehow useful to practitioners and course organizers. This material can be also useful for policy makers, because it provides evidence useful for promoting background conditions for systematic, long-term teacher education programs which can also support GCE policy formulation and agenda setting.